Fate
by Deldour
Summary: Centuries after her death, Eldrandriel is revived to protect what remains of humanity. What she doesn't know is that there are ancient powers at play, and the one aiding them is considerably weaker. The strongest one, the Darkness, offers her great power to fight in it's name. She accepts the power, but the burden of holding it's power is beyond her imagining.
1. A Sister's Fear

Her face was the last thing I saw when I died. My sister reeked of fear on that day. Not a fear for her own life, but the fear of what her death would bring to her family and friends. Something told me I would never know what she foresaw, at least not specifically. I can't imagine how her husband or child would react to the news, but all of the thoughts that came to mind were of grief.

I never had anyone close to me before, except for her. Her family never even knew I existed. When I looked into those terrified eyes, I sensed that history would state that it was her fault that she now lays there. Before even the slightest sensation of pain reached me, everything became black and cold. I am dead.

There's no way to tell how long I've pondered over that face. I suspect that the thoughts will never end, and I may drive myself mad in death. How could I have allowed that to happen?

A slight sense of tingling surged through me. Feeling returns to my body, but I don't understand why. I am dead, right? I tried to stretch my legs, but I found myself incredibly stiff. Have I just been knocked out? Will I awake in a hospital, surrounded by doctors? My ears then begin to hear a noise. All I've heard for so long is ringing, but now I can hear a voice. What is it saying?

I found strength in my muscles, and I sat up with all of my might. My eyes were still shut tightly, but the voice was becoming slightly clearer. I felt something across my chest. Whether it was my breathing or my heart pulsing I could not decide.

"Slow and steady, guardian. We don't need you destroying yourself." The voice stated as my hearing returned. I opened my eyes, and they were rushed with whiteness. A moment passed before I could finally decipher what lay ahead of me.

The car was demolished, as I expected. I took a closer look and found it incredibly rusty and dented. My head turned right, to where I expected to find my sister, but nothing rested in her seat except dust.

Venus has seen better days, from what I now saw. I'm not sure how long I've been out or dead, but I remember what this used to look like. The road was a dark shade of black, but it had a tiny bit of shine to it. Not so much to blind a driver, but enough to look pretty. There were buildings that towered like mountains throughout this city. All of them lined up and following the dozens of roads and intersections. Our car was driving out of this city. We were probably only few hundred feet from escaping the rows of buildings.

Now, the roads were grayed with grass growing through the cracks. It looked as if someone tore off easily a third of the road. Some of the buildings remained standing as the mountains they were, but even then they were full of ripped open doors and cracked glass. However, most weren't so lucky. One building, about two hundred feet from where I currently lie, had fallen over from when I last saw it. Debris from that wreckage was everywhere, but all of it was dusty.

I searched through the roads with my eyes. Cars were littered everywhere across the streets. All of them were beaten and dented, but some of them were even flipped over. Mine remained to be the only one with bullets in the seats or on the hood though.

My stiff neck turned, searching for the speaker I had heard spoke to me just moments before. Something jumped out before my eyes, and I somehow managed to jump back into the passenger seat of the car.

"I know this is a little strange. You probably have no end of questions as to what is going on. Some may include what I am and maybe how you're alive again. In short, you've been dead for centuries and a lot has happened. Most of it includes the near destruction of the human race. I am now your Ghost, and I can answer all of your questions once we get you to safety. Oh, and what is your name?"

I struggle to exit the car and stand, but I manage. "Eldrandriel. That is my name." I stated as boldly as I could towards the machine. The diamond on his screen squints, as if it's his eye.

"That is a peculiar name." the Ghost remarks. Does he know I'm lying? I push the thought away. "I've met an Ikora, Arach, Jim, Holiday, Zavala, and so on; but never an Eldrandriel. I didn't even know such a name existed."

"Judging me, are you? You don't find it a repulsive name, yes?" I ask trying to sound playful. The diamond upon his screen takes it's previous shape, and the machine turns left and then right. Its form of shaking its head, I guessed.

"We should get moving, Eldrandriel. This is fallen territory, but Vex like to make little appearances. There haven't been any guardians on this planet for a long time. I'm not even supposed to be here, according to the Vanguard. We need to get you a weapon and try to find a ship, but first you and I have to get out of the city."

"Why out of the city?" I asked as he was beginning to float in the opposite direction. "Aren't there transport shuttles that could take us off of Venus?" He simply shook himself again.

"Fallen have most likely stripped them of anything essential to leave here, if they haven't simply been using them as place to sleep. You've been dead for centuries, Guardian. I doubt that there's anything you can recall that'd be helpful in this situation, so why don't you just follow me?"

I tried to think of something useful, but my mind has thought of nothing but my sister for centuries. Then I remembered why I came to Venus so long ago, and what brought me here.

"No, follow _me_." I ordered the Ghost. He gave me a look suggesting I was insane. "I _know_ where we can get a ship to take us off of this planet." To my surprise, he didn't argue. He just let out a loud sigh.

"You're going to get us both killed, Guardian." He remarked full of doubt. I smiled smugly, shook my head, and began walking down the torn up sidewalk. There wasn't a chance anyone could've found my ship. Very few people knew about the hidden hanger bay, and I'm certain they're all dead by now. As we continued walking though, I began to wonder if these armies stumbled across it.

What kind of technology does humanity have now? Clearly we're advanced enough to bring people back from the dead. Does my government still exist? Did they create this little machine? Do these Fallen and Vex armies have technology as powerful?

A deep-pitched roar came from an object to my right. It crashed into me and knocked me off the sidewalk and onto the broken road. My arms were pinned through some cracks, and I felt as if death was reaching out to me again. I looked up and found myself staring at some sort of robot. It wasn't like the Ghost though. This robot had arms, and what I assumed to be a rifle upon it's back.

My legs were free, so I kicked it's back. The machine let go of my arms and let out a wail of pain. As it did so, I pulled it down onto the ground where I rested a second before. Quickly, I pounced on top of it and struggled to take the rifle from it's back. With it squirming so much I realized that there was no chance that I could take the rifle from it. Instead, I grabbed what appeared to be its head and began slamming it against the ground, hoping to break something essential for it to function.

Eventually, the machine stopped squirming. For half a moment, I stared at the dented and destroyed top, but I didn't loosen my grip. I then slowly turned it over and laid it upon its chest. The rifle appeared to be undamaged, so I took it.

I examined the rifle, trying to make out who manufactured it. There was only an odd symbol upon it, but it had a bit of dirt covering it, so I tried wiping it off with my hand. Blood replaced the dirt I swept off, but I noted that I wasn't injured during the fight.

"That was a Fallen Vandal." My Ghost informed me. "They're one of the types of alien races that serve the Darkness. Fortunately for us, not all forces of the darkness agree with each other."

I stared up at the Ghost. Aliens aren't real. My eyes went back to the blood upon my hands. I briefly started considering the possibility, but I pushed the thought away.

"What does this symbolize, Ghost?" I pointed towards the symbol on the vandal's rifle. He floated towards me and looked it over.

"It's the House of Winter. Fallen are divided up, much like humans used to be. This house is the only one that occupies Venus, to my knowledge, but that's still a lot more than you know."

"You mentioned something else. Something that wasn't Fallen."

"The Vex." He stated as if the thought scared him. "They're fearless and brutal machines. Their technology is superior to ours. We cannot afford to run into them today. You don't even have descent gear or training."

I looked down at my clothes. It would be nice to have something that wasn't dusty and falling apart. The thought reminded me of my sister somehow. Despite the machine's presence, I began to feel very alone. I tried pushing the thought away, but then I remembered for the billionth time why she died and how that kept her from raising her son into a good man.

A single tear dribbled down my face. I suppose that I'm still torn up over it, somehow. Not enough to get on my hands in knees and sob in front of this machine, but enough to shed a tear. I don't know if my feelings on it have just simmered down over the years or if something is keeping me together to survive. Regardless though, I was grateful that the Ghost didn't notice the tear. I don't know if I can trust it or afford to show weakness in front of it.

We continued walking down the broken and torn up roads of Venus for what seemed like hours. I had the Vandal rifle out the whole time though. That was just one alien I encountered. What would a pack of them be like?

"Eldrandriel, I've got an abnormal reading here. It's few hundred feet above us, two buildings down." The Ghost informed me, with much surprise in his voice. He floated right beside my face with his eye squinted again. "You knew about this somehow, didn't you?"

We've arrived. I ran pass the two buildings and towards the skyscraper. The doors were already ripped off, so I cautiously walked inside with my finger right next to the trigger of my rifle. My Ghost was only a few meters behind.

The building was laid out to look like it was an office building for some rich company. At one point, there were cubicles on every floor and everywhere you looked, with a chair and a computer for each one. The other side of the room used to have a pair of elevators that could take you up to every individual floor in the building, except for the basement.

What I now saw were torn up cubicles, and flipped over chairs. There were hardly any computers left, and the ones that were here were all damaged beyond repair. I had to climb across a dozen flipped over cubicles before I made it to the other side of the room.

My Ghost shot a ray of light upon the up button for the elevators, trying to activate one of them. He shook his head. They too were broken or without power. My eyes flickered toward an exit sign across the hallway, just above a door. I walked over to it and opened the door beneath it.

To my surprise, there was an intact staircase that goes all the way to the top of the building. We only had to travel up seven floors, instead of the dozens that this skyscraper easily had.

The door for this floor had an intact hand scanner on it though. This room held my ship. I placed my hand upon the scanner, allowing it to verify my identity. A green check mark appeared on the screen, and I brought my hand back. Slowly, I wrapped it around the handle of my rifle and kicked the door open.

My eyes quickly shot left and right. There appeared to be nothing more than a room riddled with filing cabinets, but I knew there was much more to it than that. There were easily a hundred cabinets here, but I remembered which had the right file. I went to the ones that contained files that started with the letter "v."

I opened a cabinet and pulled out the file titled _victory._ The sound of engines starting back up echoed throughout the room. Filing cabinets sank beneath the floor, leaving everything flat but the Ghost and I. The ceiling opened up, and the ship slammed down upon the floor.

"Can you make it fly?" I asked the Ghost, praying it would work. He turned towards me and nodded.

"I can make _anything_ work." He stated with complete arrogance. That attitude of his is starting to get on my nerves. If he keeps it up, I might begin to wish I was dead again.

Several deep-pitched roars echoed from the floors below. The Fallen heard the racket and were coming for us. I ran towards the door we came through and slammed it shut.

One of the walls slid down, revealing this room's true purpose as a hanger. The ship's engines roared and it began lifting into the air. I ran towards my one chance of survival, but a loud bang echoed throughout the room and an object knocked me to the floor.

My back was pressed up against the ground, with what I could only assumed to be the door on top of me. I managed to slide it off and sit up. My rifle was nowhere to be seen and I knew they were right there. All of the sudden, I looked down and saw some of myself disappearing. There was a white line traveling upwards from the bottom of my body, disappearing whatever got below it. I closed my eyes, preparing for the worst.

The ship's engines roared again, and I found myself instinctively opening my eyes. Instead of lying on the ground where I was, I was sitting upright in my ship's seat. I turned my head right towards the window and saw a dozen vandals amongst one monstrous looking Fallen. I guessed it was their leader.

He raised his weapon and yelled something out in their tongue. They then all began firing at my ship. Before I could even reach the flight controls, the ship launched itself out of the skyscraper.

"Don't worry, Guardian." The Ghost's voice echoed throughout the ship. "We're heading to the last safe city on Earth."

We exited the atmosphere of Venus and entered slipspace.

"If you're tired, you can get some rest." The Ghost stated sounding a little concerned for me. This caught me a little off-guard. He was just showing off how he could fix anything and that he was my superior in terms of knowledge, yet he now appears to care for my wellbeing. What an interesting little machine I've come across.

I simply shook my head to his question.

"I've rested for centuries." I began to say. "What I need now are answers."


	2. From the Void

From the Void

"Eyes up, Eldrandriel." My ghost spoke throughout the ship. I opened my eyes to find nothing but the vast vacuum of space. Did I really manage to fall asleep? Perhaps I am a hypocrite.

I push the thought away and slide my cheek off of the window. My ears were a little numb from the cold, so I gave them a quick rub. I began to wonder if the ship's heating systems were finally giving out from old age.

Curiously though, the cold did not disturb me. Instead I felt stronger as I felt it. My eyes searched for the heater controls only to find it set for eighty degrees Fahrenheit. Why do I feel cold?

I then noticed why the Ghost had awoken me. A great big circle of blue stared me down through the front windows of my ship. How I missed such a giant was well beyond me.

"Have you ever seen Earth up close before?" My Ghost asked, sounding a little bit curious.

I simply nodded. Earth is a sight I've seen before, but I've only set foot upon it a few times. A long time ago I knew Earth as hope, but when I looked into my sister's eyes for our last few moments that name changed. Hope became nothing. Ironically, Earth has managed to title itself as Hope once again.

Suddenly, the engines roared to life and the ship dived down into the earth's atmosphere. My back was pressed right up against my seat as the ship raced like a bullet from my rifle, with my body struggling to catch up to it. A flame just above the hull of the ship flickered and grew into a great fire before my eyes that swallowed the ship. My ghost notified me that the ship's shields were completely intact, seeming to sense my current fear of being burnt alive.

The ship slowed and I eased forward in my chair. Clouds emerged from the dissipating flames. The ship was shaking rapidly as it attempted to adjust. If I had any food in my stomach, I'm sure I would've been sick. The urge to vomit made me shut my eyes, hoping that I could get rid of that disgusting feeling.

It felt like hours until the repetitive shaking ceased. My eyes opened to find us below the clouds, with rain steadily drizzling above my hull. Quickly I typed on the front pad of my ship, obtaining the image from the ship's lower view. What I saw did not surprise me, but I needed to see it regardless.

Venus was the first thought that came to mind. Beaten up and stripped down cars were scattered everywhere. Buildings with shattered glass through almost every window of every building. The only difference between Earth and Venus was the flora, and perhaps the green tint that Venus has in the air.

Just as the title of Hope began to slip away, it remerged. A sphere absorbed the sky, much like Earth did not long before. I could feel the cold breeze tingling my skin again, but this time I felt heat in my veins. The heat did not seem to make the cold sensation go away, but rather co-existed with it. Was this object causing it somehow?

I shook my head. Obviously a floating ball in the sky couldn't give off such a strong feeling. Instinctively, I turned my head to the right as if I was in my car again, looking through my sister's eyes. What would she make of everything that is happening if she were here?

The ship's descending angle shifted, revealing another sight I did not previously see. There was a large, living city beneath the sphere. Giant walls surrounded it, sheltering those who lived there. My mind went to the Fallen I encountered on Venus. They are on Earth too.

My fists clenched, and my eyes narrowed. This ghost brought me back for a reason. It called me a guardian for a reason. I will face the Fallen again, but this time I'd be ready once I learned everything I need to know.

"Guardian, I would not recommend doing that within the ship!" The ghost warned me, his voice showing how frightening whatever I was doing was. I just pick a point on the ship to look at and give him a face. "What are you talking about?"

"Your hands." I looked down to see my clenched fist. My right hand was on fire but I did not feel any heat indicating that I wasn't just going crazy. I looked more closely at it and noticed that my hand wasn't actually on fire, but rather the flames appeared to be radiating out of my knuckles.

I turned to the left hand and found a completely different sight. Before, I was convinced my hands were clenched, but there was a dark purple energy within the palm of my hand. Despite the fact I knew my fists weren't clenched, it felt as if I was. What is this purple energy?

Then I came to my senses and told the Ghost I must be hallucinating and that there was no chance that I was actually seeing this. Who could radiate flame from their fist? Why would purple energy be sparking in my hand?

"Time to answer all of your questions, Eldrandriel. Welcome to the last safe city on Earth, your new home." The ghost stated without any form of emotion as I unclenched my fists, dissipating the flame and dark purple energy.

The city is beautiful. Lights were flickering everywhere across it. Laughter and happiness radiated through the streets. Men and women walked with a child's hand within their own. Peace at long last has reached humanity, despite me failing to be the one to bring them it.

My ghost slowed the ship quite a bit and flew us towards the tallest building standing. I haven't seen a taller one since my death. It just towered above everything in sight. A hanger bay door opened, and we descended from within it.

I shook my head, disagreeing with my previous thought. Humanity isn't at peace yet. Peaceful people don't need guardians.

When we touched the ground, the line of light from the hanger bay at Mars returned. I shut my eyes as it quickly traveled up my body, disappearing whatever got beneath it, and reopened them a few seconds later.

I found myself standing up outside of the ship facing my ghost that was squinting it's diamond of an eye at me. He shook himself, and began to fly off in the opposite direction as I followed.

All around me I heard voices. I looked around the hanger and found several engineers staring at me and talking amongst themselves.

"I haven't seen her before." One stated. "Did she come off planet? Since when has a ghost brought anyone back from off planet?" I caught someone else saying in a different batch of people. "Oh God, probably another hunter. Like we need more of those."

"Welcome, Guardian." An unseen person stated. I looked around the hanger, searching for the speaker and expecting another ghost, but did not find one. My ghost stopped moving, then looked up and down. A bright blue light sparked out of nowhere, and then a man stood before us with a huge grin on his face.

Something was wrong with this man though. He wasn't human. His skin was slightly purple, and his eyes were orange. Long orange hair flowed from his head. I thought about if his hair was naturally orange, but the thought slipped from my brain as he began to speak.

"It's good to see a new face here. I am Vlado Kriz the slayer of the Darkness, savior of children, and the ladies man." He begins to say, sounding a little full of himself. "Who are you?"

I squint a little at him, uncertain what to make of this arrogant, little thing. "My name is Eldrandriel." I say plainly. How do I know if I can trust these people for sure? Is he even a human? I need them to believe they can trust me though, regardless if they are friendly or not.

I reach my right hand out to shake his, but he grabs my fingers with his and lowers himself to give the top of my hand a slight kiss. This is terrific. All I need is a scoundrel right now when I want answers.

I let him raise himself back up and let go of my hand before I bring it back to my side, despite the desire to fling it out of his grasp and give him a good punch across the jaw. I've never before been attracted to anyone and I don't plan to ever be, which I suppose makes sense given my condition.

"Welcome Eldrandriel to The Tower. Where did you come from? South America? Old Australia?" He asks sounding only slightly curious. Before I can answer, my Ghost tells him instead. "Venus."

Vlado's eyes widened and his face got serious. He turned his head toward my ghost with a deep look of concern on his face. He simply asked "why?"

"Telling you isn't worth my time." My ghost shot back at him. "If I'm going to have to explain why I revived her, then I'd prefer to tell the story to someone who matters."

I couldn't help myself, so I smirked just a little. I've always enjoyed seeing those I dislike get insulted or brought down, but unfortunately Vlado seems to notice that detail. He slowly walks up to me looking speechless, but shakes his head maybe three feet away.

"Follow me. We must bring this to the Vanguard's attention." Vlados turns away from me and begins moving quickly up the stairway out of the hanger as my ghost and I barely manage to keep up with his pace.

We entered an area on the building where there was no roof and it was laid out like a park. Trees and some grass grew before a metal railing by the edge off of the building. A small mail office appeared to be just past a trio of very tall ATMs. People were everywhere. Some were fully armored; others wore very protective looking robes, and the rest had a medium amount of gear fitted with a cloak. All had firearms on them. These were guardians.

I noticed that some of these guardians weren't human or like Vlado. They were machines. As I looked around, I saw more machines but none of them were the same type as what I now knew were guardians. These droids were armed with weapons and reminded me vaguely of the peasant droids of Mars in my old life. We called them that because they did all the manual labor that humans no longer had any interest of. They still seem very different from the ones I remember, but it's good to find something familiar within this past day.

We walked past the mail office and down a set of stairs to find a robot guardian equipped with very heavy looking set of gear blocking our path to the next room. "What business do you have here, awoken?"

I pondered over what he said. Could he be referring to Vlado as an awoken as if this was his species name?

Vlado put his left hand over where a pouch lay on his right shoulder. He pulled out a knife and tossed it around in his hand. "You exos must be programed to follow the rules to the letter, I swear."

The machine, which I assumed are classified as exos, seemed to tighten what symbolized a jaw. "We have free will." He stated sounding offended.

Vlado pointed back to me. "I thought the Vanguards would like to speak with Ms. Venus over here. Protocol is for all new guardians to be found on Earth, correct?"

The exo nodded and held out his left hand, gesturing for us to pass. We walked down another set of stairs and passed through a couple desks before reaching a room with a large table in the middle. Three individuals stood at the table, arguing loudly with one another.

The first to be seen was an blue exo with a horn-like shape sprouting from his forehead, who wore a cloak on his back. An older looking and bald awoken male stood a few feet from him, wearing what looked like extremely heavy gear without much effort. Lastly, was a bald African-American woman who wore purple robes with a hint of pink.

"We can't send more guardians out of Old Russia! The Fallen forces are stronger out there!" The awoken yelled into the face of the cloaked exo. "Fallen?" The women interjected. "The House of Devils focuses their assaults in Old Russia, not beyond it. We have never heard back from anyone regarding our enemy in West Africa. How can we know for sure if they are Fallen?"

"Whose to say those guardians didn't just abandon us?" The exo asked sounding a little sure of himself and his answer. "We have no other enemies on Earth besides the Fallen. A lot of people are going rogue, believing that they can make it on their own or fight the darkness better than we can."

The awoken looked angry, as if the very thought of someone abandoning them was insulting. Before he could say anything that would surely cause more problems, Vlado gave a quick cough so that we would be recognized. The three vanguards turned their heads to face the sudden noise, with their eyes studying my movements.

Vlado stepped down the stairs, with the ghost and I not far behind, and approached the massive table. "I'm sorry to interrupt your lovely breakfast discussion, but we may have a slight problem." The vanguards' eyes did not widen at all, unsurprised by the fact that more trouble was here for humanity.

"Our new edition to the guardians goes by the name of Eldrandriel. While the name isn't as attractive as I was hoping, that is not the problem. Well, at least not your problem." I gave him a slight glare in response to the insult. Vlado grinned only slightly, but forced a stern face to return. "She comes from Venus."

That did widen the vanguard's eyes. Almost on reflex to the statement, they abruptly turned their heads to study me over again with their eyes. The woman turned her head to face my ghost though.

"We set the rule to never leave Earth to search for guardians for a reason, as we do for all of the other rules. Why did you feel obligated to break it?" She asked very coldly, but in a way that seemed as if she were already giving him a lecture on how ridiculous he was. My ghost gave her one of his diamond squints, as if not seeing where he went wrong.

"According to what we have written down, 'ghosts traveling to other planets in the search for guardians is strictly forbidden unless the probable guardian has an incredibly strong connection to the light.' I thought she had just that."

Three different white lights sparked in the middle of the air, and then the figures of much larger and modified ghosts replaced the light. They floated towards me and stopped a few feet from my face just before scanning me. One turned to the woman.

"She has a strong connection to the light, but nothing too abnormal from the norm. In fact, the readings I got from you were much higher than hers, Ikora." The other two confirmed with their owners before all three of them disappeared. The woman did not seem pleased with this information.

"The risk to having a ghost such as you captured was not worth the risk. I apologize if this may come off as rude, Eldrandriel. This is not to say you wouldn't have been revived later, if we would have retaken or were beginning to send guardians to Venus. The problem here is that ghosts are incredibly powerful, while not as powerful as the Traveler, we cannot risk the forces of the Darkness getting their hands on them."

I nodded, somewhat understanding her train of thought. The ghost did manage to bring me back from the dead. What else could it do?

The exo then interrupted. "Perhaps introductions are in order before we continue. I am Cayde-6, vanguard of the hunters. Mister honor and glory over there is Commander Zavala, the vanguard of the titans. Ikora Rey is our vanguard for the warlocks. We might as well make it official now: You're a guardian. We sort of advise and teach those within the three types of guardians."

I turned my head to study them all, just as they had studied me. Ikora then further explained, almost as if she were sensing my curiosity. "Depending on your personality and morals, you'll be placed into one of the three categories. While many other factors contribute to it as well, these are the major two. Hunters are a little adventurous and free-spirited, living up to their name. Titans are honorable and strategic fighters, always ready to face the enemy head on. The ones that I advise, the warlocks, are curious and intelligent individuals, ready to shatter the darkness through finding its weaknesses."

Cayde-6 folded his arms together, and spoke with positivity. "I can already tell you lack the qualities to be a hunter, so no tests will be required in that area. My business is done here, for the moment. Vlado, are you coming with me to the bar or what?" Vlado grinned and quickly ran beside his vanguard while I'm left wondering how a machine can drink beer.

"It's unfortunate there are so many hunters." Zavala spoke up, sounding disappointed. "Some of them make me question how I'm able to work beside someone so uncontrolled. I could use a few more honorable men and women."

"And I need more intelligent thinkers." Ikora chimed in, also opening the doors for me to join their categories. "However, I have one question that might speed this process up: What did you do in your old life for a living? What was your area of occupation?"

I looked down to the ground, debating whether or not I should actually tell them. I haven't told a single soul since I've been revived what I use to do. There's only person that I've ever told. I looked to the right, once again searching for my sister's eyes.

"I used to serve as an agent."


	3. The Right Path

_Will-23_

The sun began to rise over the hills beyond the city. Rays of orange stretched across the buildings, highlighting mainly the tower. The sensors within my body transmitted the signals to me. It was warm. The day begins a most welcome, and warm sight.

My hands lay softly upon the rails overlooking the edge of the tower hub area. I stood on the grass rather than the cemented walkway. The world seems so peaceful from up here, but I know better than to believe the illusion. As if sensing my disappointment, footsteps from behind me grew slightly louder, breaking the gentle silence.

"I often wonder why you come here," a voice began to speak. "Most titans like to stay focused on their duties, and plan for what they can do next with little rest in them, but not you. Instead I find you here every morning watching the sunrise. Why?"

I turn my head to the left slightly to face the speaker, finding Commander Zavala resting his hands upon the metal rails while staring into the sunset, just as I. The question repeated within my head. Why do I come here and watch the sunrise?

I straighten my back, and return my gaze to the sun. "When guardians forget about what they protect, they're not guarding anything anymore. To forget about the good that we sacrifice for is to journey into the darkness. That is the greatest mistake any soldier could make."

Zavala gave me a strong clap on my shoulder, chuckling a little to himself. "You are a wise titan, Will. Perhaps amongst the best all of humanity has to offer," he began to say. "I think it's good that you do this. Not enough people are focusing about what we're fighting for nowadays. Myself, included.

"However, to not defend at all would be to let the darkness triumph," he concluded. His eyes looked downwards toward the city, considering something, and then he straightened himself to face me. "Do you recall our latest recruit?"

The woman that ghost revived on Venus. I nod as the memory of her from yesterday becomes more visible. There's only so many reasons why a ghost would risk itself to find a guardian on another planet.

"Ikora and I have agreed that she should be tested," Zavala continues. "Cayde was fairly certain that she would not fit in well with the hunters, and I agree. However, we cannot determine if she is better fit for the role of a warlock or a titan by what she did in her past life."

Now I got curious. "What did she do for a living," I asked. Zavala sighed, indirectly telling me that the thought of it wasn't the most attractive ones. Whether it was for fear of Ikora getting a new warlock that he desired or debating on whether or not we could trust her I could not know.

"She was an agent," he replies. "I've met soldiers, scientists, and a mix of other things. Not once have I met someone who was an agent. I don't know how they operate in specifics, and I don't know if loyalty and strategy outweighs their curiousness. Still, I feel like she can be trusted as a guardian in general.

"However, she needs to be tested somehow to determine where she'll fit in best. I'd organize it myself if I didn't have missions to advise, tactics to discuss, and more. Shaxx, while he may be willing to assist, would not go out of his way to organize it. I was hoping you could be the one."

I turn my head to him, not with surprise or pride, but with readiness. It's not often when guardians need to be tested where they'll fit in. I suppose all of the former deceivers had to find a place to go when they were dissolved. The ones that didn't abandon humanity, at the very least.

He looks down towards the grass. "I suppose I can try to find another." Zavala turns his back to me and begins walking back towards the Vanguard Hall. I walk up to him and lie my hand on his shoulder pad. The action is responded with a smile.

I turn my head to the elevator. "My report will be ready for you tomorrow." His eyebrows curve, almost as if asking "tomorrow?" We've been thinking about this test-about her-wrongly. There's one very simple way to verify she's not a warlock. A way that is overlooked because it seems so simple to be true: All you need to do is talk to them.

I stepped into the elevator, and turned to face Zavala. My hand grabbed my pad and checked where Eldrandriel was taking up residence. "floor twenty-nine, room 14," I muttered to myself as I pressed the floor's button. The doors shut, and my mind began thinking about what I should begin asking her. What answers to what questions would indicate if they were more analytical or more determined?

The doors opened, and I shook my head. Would I have wanted to be treated to be treated so harshly? Would I have wanted to be looked at as another assignment or waste of time? My feet carried me down the hallway, sensors searching for the proper room number. The old Vanguards never treated me as another problem.

My eyes locked on a door with her room number. I proved that I was worth that treatment. My hand raised, curling into a slight fist to knock on the door. She should be given the same opportunity. I knocked on the door.

Something closed. "Come in," she invited. I twisted the handle and opened the door to find her in a rather small quarters. There was a single bed, that showed signs of use from the night before, beside a small dresser. Eldrandriel sat cross-legged on a chair against a desk, wearing what looked like some warm bed robes.

A closed book lay there. Dusty and old, I observed. "You're the Titan that guarded the Vanguard last night," she began. "Your commander said he'd have someone test me-someone he could depend on-very soon. Is that you?"

I nodded, and the gesture was met with the narrowing of her eyebrows. Her action wasn't out of disgust, but curiousness. Those bronze eyes seemed to study faster and much more effectively than my sensors ever could. "Please, have a seat. I'm interested in hearing about this test of yours."

My head turned to the bed. There was nowhere else to sit, and she turned herself to face me. "Eldrandriel, I hold some very firm beliefs," I stated as gently as I could. "The first is that you must truly understand what you are fighting for to remain strong in the light, and not be overcome by or found as a servant of the darkness. The second, and the one I'd like us to focus about, is knowing your comrades. To understand the people you are working with-"

"-And to feel the bond of friendship that'll drive you to survive," She interrupted, handing me the book. I wiped some dust off of it and examined the title. _True Combat_ by Mathew O'Michael. There was bookmark placed within the middle of it. I looked up at her. "Yeah, I read all of that already."

"This is a fairly large book," I chuckled. "I must admit I've read it many times. Not that often as of recently, but before I was brought back. Us exos have lost our memories. Some lose it various times. The numbers in our names often indicate how many."

She raised a hand to her chin. "I'm sorry, but what is your full name?" That question did not seem to stem from curiousness. Eldrandriel looked slightly concerned about me even. I forced a slight smile and answered: "Will-23."

Her bronze eyes widened, astonished by the number. A hand went to her mouth. She remained quiet for a moment, staring at the floor. "Despite knowing that small fact," I continued, "there are still images and cut up memories of that book. It is odd that you would have this particular book in your possession when I visit. Why do you have it with you, anyway?"

I handed the book back so that she would place it on the desk. There was an object beside where she placed it I had not noticed before. A long and thin sheet of paper with things listed on each of it's lines. Eldrandriel looked at me, noting that my eyes locked onto the list, and handed it to me.

"Ikora thought I should do some research," she stated. "Start to see what I thought would be the better option for me when I have the free time for it. Being dead for all these years kind of eliminates work time, so pretty much just all day."

I gave a slight laugh. My arm buzzed, with my head's projection telling me that it was almost time for breakfast. As if on instinct, I stood up from the bed, and offered Eldrandriel a hand to raise her. "What about that test," she asked.

"Don't worry," I replied. "You just finished it. I'll show you around the tower after we get some food for you to eat, and maybe some power for myself."

She smiled warmly. "Of course. Can you give me a moment to get out of my pajamas?" I nodded, and turned to exit the room. "Maybe you can tell me what you think before reporting it to the Vanguard."

A true smile formed on my face as I closed the door. She seems like a nice woman. Someone I could see myself befriending and fighting alongside with. A thought hit me. My back lied onto the door and the smile vanished. "It's too bad I may never get that chance," I muttered to myself.


End file.
